The International Olympic Committee president-designate of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) , Kosti Coventry, delivered his first official speech at the 45th OCA plenary session in Kuwait, it explicitly positions Asia as the core of the future of the Olympic movement and commits to promote global sport through listening and collaboration.
Kirsty Coventry, file photo, Source: Visual China
Coventry said Asia was not only an“Important part” of the Olympic community but also“The centre of the future”. Asia was“Full of energy, passion, innovation and ambition”, she said, recalling the outstanding contributions made by the region in recent years in hosting three consecutive Olympic Games (Pingchang 2018 Winter Olympics, Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics and Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics) , and the upcoming 2027 of the first ever Olympic Games in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. “The scale and impact of the Beijing Olympics set a new standard for the world,” she said, adding that Asia was redefining the boundaries of the Olympics through continued innovation and high standards of hosting.
Coventry will formally succeed Tomas Bach on June 23 as the first African (Zimbabwean) IOC president from a non-european or non-n background. She put forward two core tasks: one is to promote the development of high-level competitive sports through the Olympic Games, and the other is to popularize Olympic values from the grass-roots level. To that end, she promised to“Listen” as a priority, inviting national and regional Olympic committees and athletes to share their concerns directly. “Only by listening to each other can we move forward together,” she said, adding that the focus would be on supporting athletes throughout the Olympic process.
In addition, Coventry said he would focus in the future on emerging areas, such as the integration of esports with traditional sports, and continue the pro-asian policies of the Bach administration. “Asia’s voice must be heard and my door is always open,” she said, looking forward to working with the Asian Olympic community in the coming months, ensure the olympic movement“Remains relevant and leaves an extraordinary legacy for the younger generation”.
The speech was Mr Coventry’s first public appearance as chairman of the IOC. During the OCA, the Asian Olympic Committees discussed a number of strategic issues, including improving gender representation, using social media to reach younger audiences and planning for future events. Notably, preparations for the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya and the 20302006 Asian Games have also been put on the agenda, while the issue of timing coordination between the Asian Games and the Olympic qualifying events remains to be resolved.